Robert Kenley Burdette ’53

With sorrow, we record the death of our friend Bob, Apr. 19, 1998, in Churchville, Va.

After finishing Somerset Maugham Elementary School with Dave Brown, Bob received his diploma from Tenafly [N.J.] H.S. prior to Princeton. At the university, Bob worked in Commons and the U-Store and put the shot in track. He was a member of Dial Lodge, sang in the choir, and played in the Tiger Band. He majored in music, and his thesis was entitled "The Orchestration of Beethoven."

Bob did not become a conductor of classical music, but he did become a conductor of English at several colleges, after receiving his doctorate in English. Bob then turned to law, obtaining his degree from Michigan Law School, and practiced in Charlotte, Mich., for several years. From 197484, he lawyered in NYC before moving to Virginia as a freelance editor for several publishing houses. His son Robert Jr. said Bob was interested in small farming and grew apples, peaches, and cherries. Dave Brown said it succinctly: "Bob was a swell guy." To that, we all agree and express our deep sympathy to his widow, Barbara, Robert Jr., daughter Anne Marie Johnston, and sister Jane Cook.

The Class of 1953